According to NewMediaAge magazine, Nintendo has become the first ever consumer brand to disable user communication and feedback on the popular social networking site Bebo.
Nintendo has launched a major campaign for a game on Bebo, but has disabled the wall feature that allows fans to comment across the campaign pages.
EA admitted they were surprised by this move, as talking is what people do one these sites.
To quote: The move to silence users has been met with surprise by brands and agencies, which said it contradicts the very nature of social media as a communications medium.
Nintendo global policy bans all comments, blogs and forums on Official Nintendo online material.
Nintendo said it selected Bebo as it reflected the social aspect of the Animal Crossing game, but it's the first consumer brand to block communication features on the social network.
The campaign, which also includes display advertising ... More »
In the gaming world exclusivities have become all but obsolete. So it should come as little surprise that analysts are stating the future of Epic’s gaming giant, Gears of War, will be bright on all fronts of the console war.
Analyst Michael Pachter, who is well known throughout the gaming industry for his insight to the future of gaming, has stated “we pretty much know that Gears of War 3 is probably gonna come out on PS3.”
Pachter is going off the idea that things today aren’t exactly exclusive, they’re only set aside for a set amount of time. If this holds true, PS3 gamers will get a chance to see just how much they’ve been missing.
As gamers of all three major systems, we welcome multiplatform any day. The console war is getting down to the point of ‘who’s system has the better technology’, and steering clear of ‘who has the better games’.
Either way this one ends up, Gears of War has cemented it’s p... More »
BrandRepublic (linked above) is reporting that Red Bull has become the first brand to build a presence in PlayStation Home.
Red Bull has apparently built a tropical island, featuring an aeroplane racing game based on Red Bull's real world Red Bull Air Race series.
To quote: John Beasley, brand marketing manager for Red Bull UK said Home represents an opportunity for brands to create "memorable and rich content".
"The game gave us the first opportunity to recreate in the gaming world what we try to do in the real world, which is to facilitate interaction, to give people stories, memories, experiences and a really good opportunity to interact with the brand," he said.
Beasley said Home will show marketers how in-game advertising can be used effectively and will open up the medium to more brands. "It's an easy environment for brands to take that first step into gaming," he added.
The new firmware update for the PS3 will be released today. Firmware v2.53 will contain many changes to your system settings. The full list of changes will be categorized under each of your XMB sections.
Users
* You now have an option to set the PS3 to turn off automatically after a background download or installation of content. This option is available when you turn off the system while content is being downloaded or installed.
Settings
* BD/DVD has been renamed to Video Settings
* Sequential Playback has been added as an option under Video Settings
* Divx VOD Registration Code has been added under System Settings
* Power Save Settings have been added as an option for the system and controllers. They can now be set to shut off after a certain period of time
* The method for connecting Bluetooth devices has been changed
* You can now choose German, French (Canada) and French (Switzerland) k... More »
Paste Magazine has created a 'Top 10 NES Games of All Time' list today.
To quote: The video games on this list kept me company through many an elementary-school sleepover at friends' houses, provided endless fodder for recess playground conversation and even inspired a few short stories from yours truly (each plot revolving around the fantasy of getting sucked inside a video game).
In honor of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, I dedicate this list and to Shigeru Miyamoto and all the other folks at Nintendo who made all that fun possible... oh, and of course my beloved aunt Jean who sent me and my siblings our first NES console.
10. Gradius [Konami] - 1986 Collecting the power-up pellets and pimping out your little spaceship provided the irresistible hook. Once you got three rows of lasers firing, your robotic foes stood little chance.
9. Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse [Konami] - 1990 The Belmont... More »
Responding to new rumors of a PS3 price cut in March 2009, a Sony Computer Entertainment America rep told Edge, "There are no plans for a price reduction on PS3 in March 09, and anything reported on or discussed otherwise is purely rumor or speculation."
Over the weekend, online magazine D+Pad cited an anonymous source who purportedly attended a Sony staff briefing in London where execs said the PS3 will have a more competitive price from March 2009 and beyond.
March 31, 2009 marks the end of Sony's fiscal year, during which the company expects to sell 10 million PS3 units, or about flat compared to the previous year.
Sony has repeatedly denied a PS3 price cut will take place before the holidays.
Currently, Xbox 360s retail from $199 to $399 and Wiis sell for $249 in the U.S. Standard 80GB PS3s sell for $399.
Get some dismemberment action on before chowing down on turkey and stuffing. Below is the official press release, courtesy of EA!
Press Release: Electronic Arts Inc. announced today that a free* downloadable demo for the award-winning videogame Dead Space will be launched on November 25th. The stunning demo showcases the critically acclaimed combat and strategic dismemberment of the epic sci-fi action game.
The demo comes just in time for holiday gift buyers to get a taste of the gore and action that has made the game a critical and commercial hit. The demo will be available at the PlayStation Store in North America and Xbox LIVE Marketplace worldwide*. In Europe, the demo will be available at the PlayStation Store on November 27th.
Winner of over 27 critic awards and currently nominated for Best Action Adventure Game on Spike TV's upcoming 2008 Video Game Awards on December 14th, gamers can experience a taste of, as GamePro magazine says, "..... More »
Ziff Davis Media announced Wednesday that it was ending print publication of its 27-year-old flagship, PC Magazine, and would take the title online only.
PC Magazine’s circulation was 1.2 million in the late 1990s. It is the latest of several magazine publishers to drop a print edition, as advertising plummets and the cost of printing a paper version rises.
“The viability for us to continue to publish in print just isn’t there anymore,” Jason Young, chief executive of Ziff Davis, said in an interview.
To quote: Seven production, circulation and advertising employees will be cut as a result of the move, out of a total of about 140 who work on PC Magazine and PCMag.com. Mr. Young said the company was considering taking its other print magazine, the video-game publication Electronic Gaming Monthly, into an online-only format, but would not make a decision before the end of the year.
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